Savour all year long

Product of the vine, product of life, Beaujolais wines are to be shared and come to life when you follow one essential rule: simplicity!

Looking at the calendar, the Beaujolais Crus can be served for the present vintage, from 15th December, but it is wiser to allow them to "do their Easter duty" (leave them in the bottle until after Easter). The time you can keep them, depending on the appellation, goes from 3 to 10 years. Every year at the end of April or the very beginning of May, the Fête des Crus du Beaujolais, which is movable between the 10 appellation areas and villages that give their names to their Crus, celebrates the release of the new vintage. Winemakers give tastings of their wines in a festive outdoor atmosphere with loads of entertainment and demonstrations.

Looking at Nouveau wines, though their arrival on 3rd Thursday in November gives rise to much enter-tainment and festive celebration, enjoying them isn't limited to the year of the vintage, contrary to com-mon belief, they can also be drunk after 2 to 3 years. In addition to the festivities organised by the wine-makers in their cellars to launch their Nouveau wine, there are two big celebrations held in the region. In Beaujeu, the Beaujolais region's historic capital, the Sarmentelles stages the arrival of Beaujolais Nou-veau and gives a whole night of entertainment and shows, light shows, music and tastings to the 20 000 amateurs who converge on the town every year for the event. This is followed by a local food and wine fair for the whole weekend, set around the 12 Beaujolais appellations. Simultaneously, the Fête du Beaujolais gourmand in Tarare, at the southern end of the winemaking area, brings together the best of the region's chefs to cook up a gastronomic menu, using the local specialities cooked... in wine!